


A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing

by TheLadySif



Category: Thor (Movies), Thor - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Werewolf, Cabins, Drunk Werewolves, F/M, Keep it in your pants Loki, Marking, Minor Injuries, Past Relationship(s), Protective Loki, Protective Sif, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Texts From Last Night, Werewolf Mates, Werewolf Reveal, Werewolf Senses, Werewolf Sif, cabin in the woods, walking around naked
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-01
Updated: 2015-10-11
Packaged: 2018-04-02 07:51:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 8,930
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4052224
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheLadySif/pseuds/TheLadySif
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sif stumbles upon a cabin in the woods after a rough night and it's up to her to unravel the mystery behind the man who owns that cabin.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Hello little girl

Sif awakened when she felt cold stream water trickling across her toes. She groaned at the way her muscles ached with heaviness before she even moved them. The sunlight made her squint when she opened her eyes but she was glad that it was the sun that greeted her. The events of last night were still a blur in her mind but she knew as the day progressed, the events would begin to present themselves to her. She mentally prepared for when that happened as she gingerly lifted herself up off the ground.  She immediately collapsed back onto the ground with a loud thud and another groan.

Eventually, she would need to move so that she could assess the damage she had taken but for a few minutes, she allowed herself the pleasure of relaxing. Rolling onto her with some difficulty, Sif took a moment to stare up at the sky. The bright blue sky above her was a wonderful sight and she was glad to know that she had survived for another month.

Finally, after what seemed to be a good hour, Sif sat up and washed the blood. There were scratches along her arms and legs, one on her leg that looked particularly nasty and Sif knew she would have to get it looked at. Perhaps, she would have something for it back at the flat. First, she needed to find her bearings…and some new clothes, judging by the looks of the shredded pile nearby. Sif stood up and began to limp downstream. Water usually meant there was some sort of civilization nearby. There were many times that she had to stop and rest for a short while before continuing on her way. She only hoped that she would find someone who would take pity on her soon.

Pity came in the form of a small cabin next to the stream that was issuing a light smoke from its chimney and the man who owned that small cabin. She hobbled her way to the front door and knocked hard. The man who opened the door seemed quite irritated at first until he got a good look at the naked woman who stood in front of him. In turn, Sif eyed him carefully, surveying first the type of person the man in front of her was.

Everything about the man in front of her screamed neat, tidy, and organized. His jet black hair, though long, was neatly slicked back away from his face. His eyebrows had been finely plucked – Sif made a mental note to ask him who does his eyebrows. His dark blue long-sleeved shirt and black jeans were lint and stain free. His dark shoes looked as if they had been polished recently from the way they shined at her. She looked back up into his eyes and cleared her throat, “Would you be so kind to give me shelter for the day? Or at the very least some spare clothes?” Her voice was coarse despite the many times she had stopped to drink the stream water.

The man stepped back from the door and his extended his arm into the cabin, “Please, come inside. I think I have some bandages and some Hydrogen peroxide somewhere in this mess.” He beckoned her inside. Sif wrapped her arms around herself and followed him into the cabin. “Why don’t you go take a proper shower? Second door on your left down that hallway.” The man pointed toward the hall and Sif hobbled along in the direction he pointed. She found the door easily, turned on the lights stepped into the shower before she pulled the curtain closed.

After she fiddled with the knobs, warm water poured out of the shower head and she leaned against the wall to take some of the weight off of her leg. She stayed for several minutes with her eyes close, leaning against the wall until she could take no more of standing around. She reopened her eyes, grabbed the bottle of shampoo and conditioner, and cleaned her hair.  Blood and soap pooled around the drain of the shower. Sif took a moment to make sure she was clean before turning off the water. She grabbed towel and wrapped it firmly around her as she walked out of the room back to see if the man had found any bandages.

She padded along silently, carefully gazing into each room until she found him sitting at the small kitchen table with a cup of tea in front of him. On the top of table was a set of clothes that he gestured toward, “It’s not much but I think those should fit you.” Sif took the clothes from him and returned to the bathroom to change quickly. The man had provided her with a pair of black shorts and a red t-shirt. When she reemerged from the bathroom, he had moved into the living room with his cup of tea and stood staring out the front window.

“Thank you for your generous hospitality,” Sif said to the man. He turned back to look at her over his shoulder and gave her a small smile. He moved toward her with the bandages in his hand, gestured for her to sit in the chair she stood next to. After she sat down, he began to clean her wounds with the Hydrogen peroxide. Sif couldn't help but to wince at the pain as the man set aside the bottle and began to wrap her wounds with the bandages.

“You looked like you had a rough night. Too much partying down at the lake front?” He asked her, moving across the room to sit down on the couch.

“No, I…” Sif paused for a moment, biting her lip until the metallic taste of blood entered her mouth. “I was attacked by wolves. I’ll have to tell the Forest Rangers to keep an eye out and to properly warn incoming guests about wolf attacks.” The man did not seem so concerned about the wolf attacks but he was giving her an odd look that Sif couldn’t quite figure out what it was.

“Perhaps, you should rest a while before you return to town.” The man suggested to her. "You'll be quiet safe from wolf attacks while you're here. You can sleep in the bedroom, down the hall and first door on your right." Sif was exhausted and the idea of a nice cozy bed to sleep in sounded absolutely wonderful to her. She was a bit reluctant to move at first. How did she know that she could trust him? She was really tired though and in a lot of pain from the night before. She needed a proper rest before she continued anywhere else.

The man watched her leave the room before he stood and gazed out the window. "Goodbye, little girl. And hello..." He murmured to himself.


	2. A Small Delay

It was nearly nightfall when Sif stumbled back into the kitchen of the man’s cabin. The smell of food had wafted through the cabin and reached her sensitive nose. It was then that Sif realized how hungry she was and how little she had eaten over the last couple of days.

When she walked into the kitchen, the man was huddled over the stovetop and stirring something in a pot. He heard her enter and looked over at her as she sat down at the small table on the other side of the room. “You rested well enough for the day. I can only imagine how hungry you are, considering you missed both breakfast and lunch,” the man said to her after setting down the wooden mixing spoon and moving over to the cupboards on his left. He pulled out two bowls and grabbed two spoons from the drawer beside the stove. He filled the bowl with whatever concoction he made before crossing over to Sif and setting a bowl in front of her as he placed his on the table. He went back to the stove to turn off the dials and knobs as well as to pour the both of them something to drink with their meal. Sif glanced over the contents inside the bowl- there was macaroni pasta, ground beef, and diced tomatoes. “Have you had goulash before? The recipe I use makes it a bit sweeter with the brown sugar added to it.”

“It was one of my favorite meals as a kid. My mother referred to it as ‘ _poor people food_ ’ but I would eat goulash for days when she made it,” Sif told him as she gave the man’s goulash a taste test before he noticed. The man was right about it being sweeter and the diced tomatoes gave it an interesting flavor. Sif felt hungry enough that she could eat not only the contents in her bowl but the entire pot of goulash left on the stovetop.

“I called you a cab. It should arrive in the next thirty minutes,” He said to her as he set down her drink in front of her and sat down in his chair.

“Thank you…” Sif paused for a moment while the man began to eat his supper, “I don’t believe we exchanged a proper introduction. My name is Sif.” She extended her hand across the table and he shook it in return.

“Pleasure to meet you, Sif. I’m Loki. It’s not every day that I get visitors or even unclothed visitors such as yourself.” Loki replied and Sif repressed the blush that threatened to creep onto her face.

“I’m sorry about that,” Sif apologized and began to eat the meal before her. “It was a rough night.”

Loki nodded in agreement, “That’s certainly what it looked like. I can only imagine how it must have been to face those wolves by yourself. How ever did you escape their carnivorous jaws?”

“I am a very good tree climber. I had to spend the whole night in the tree,” Sif told him, looking away from him and staring intently at her plate.

“It is odd for the wolves to be here this time of year. Usually, they travel north for several months. If I hadn’t heard a wolf howl last night, I would have been less likely to believe your story,” Loki commented before taking a sip from his glass of water. "Not to mention your scratches and bite marks, those are distinctly wolf-like." 

Sif set down her fork and stood from her chair, "If you'll excuse me, I am not feeling well." Sif limped from the kitchen to the bathroom. After she closed the door behind her, she slumped down to the floor with a soft thump.  _Damn these bandages_ , Sif thought herself as she pulled on her loose bandages. She saw the bandage wrap on the counter and grabbed them so that she could rewrap her wounds with the new bandages.

While wrapping her bandages, she lost track of the time she was spending in the bathroom until a soft knock on the bathroom door startled her from her thoughts. "Are you alright?" Loki's voice asked her through the door. 

Sif pulled herself up from the floor and opened the door, "I am fine. I was just fixing the bandages."

Loki nodded slowly as he glanced down at her bandages, "They look fine now. Your cab is here to take you home."

"Once again, thank you for your hospitality. Most people would take advantage of a woman who is alone and injured in the woods," Sif told him as she passed by him and headed for the front door. "It's good to know that there are some good people left in the world." Loki watched her get into the cab from the window. His eyes met hers as she looked back at the cabin once the cab started to take off. Sif turned away and murmured to herself, "Never again will I wind up back here."


	3. The Sheep

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry this is late! My laptop refuses to turn on again. I thought I lost everything but I found my flashdrive with all my files.

Sif knew she shouldn’t have gone to the cabin again, but she was bleeding and in pain. She needed medical attention and it was the closest place. She was regretting every limping step forward as she neared the cabin. She leaned against the door, surveying her other options. Her mind had no other options for her. Left with no other choice, she knocked on the door with a grimace. Several long minutes went by and Sif knocked on the door again with as much force as she could muster. The door opened and Loki was surprised to see her again, “This is the second time you’ve come knocking on my door stark naked injured beyond all hell. I think that deserves some explanation doesn’t it?”

Sif had no time to play any games with him, “I’d rather not bleed out all over the ground.” He pulled her inside the cabin and into the bathroom. Sif didn’t speak but let Loki help her to clean the blood from her hair and the rest of her body that she was unable to reach. He wrapped her in a towel after helping her out of the tub. He moved her into a small bedroom in the back of the cabin, set her on the bed before heading out of the room to grab bandages and some hydrogen peroxide

Sif’s head lolled back against the pillow sleepily but still Loki tried to talk to her as he tended to her wounds, “That scar on your arm, it’s older. What’s it from?”

“A past mistake,” Sif murmured, the day’s adventure was taking a toll on her now. She chalked that up to the loss of blood she sustained.

“Tell me about it,” He said simply as he wrapped a bandage around the injured part of her leg.

“I was eleven when it first happened. I was playing outside when it turned dark so I began to hurry home. I crossed paths with a large black dog and it attacked me. My parents heard my screaming and shooed the dog away. The bite became infected so they took me to the hospital, patched me up and sent me back home. We didn’t realize it then what had really happened. It wasn’t a dog….” Sif sighed slowly.

“You seemed to be attacked by wolves a lot.” Loki said to her as he fiddled with tying the bandage up. “Do you really think you need to keep up this façade, Sif?” He looked back up at Sif to see her fast asleep. “We’ll discuss this in the morning then.” He muttered to himself as he continued to fix her injuries. Afterward, he pulled the blanket up to cover her. He grabbed a spare blanket and an extra pillow from the bed and headed to the couch in the living room.

* * *

Sif was stirred from her sleep by the vivid nightmares that had transformed her splendid dreams. Her skin prickled and she pushed herself up quickly, running over to the window to stare up at the sky. _Tell me it was just a dream. Tell me that it isn’t true._ She thought to herself. The sky was clear and she could see the moon far above her, just beginning to wane. She breathed a sigh of relief, the relief lasting only temporarily. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end and she turned around to face the figure in the corner. Loki stood in the doorway, staring at her and Sif pulled the blanket up to cover herself. “We need to talk. There are questions that have to be answered.”

“I can’t give you the answers you’re looking for,” Sif told him, wrapping her arms around herself. It was about the scars she had, about her showing up at the cabin again, the “wolf” attacks. She couldn’t tell him anything about that. Those were her secrets that she swore to take to her grave.

“Then, let me tell you what I know.” Loki stepped into the room slowly. “You disappear once a month to go _‘camping’_ and on that little trip into the woods, you change. You end up miles away from your little campsite. You are the reason for those self-inflicted wounds and most of the time, the blood you find on yourself belongs to you.” He drew closer and closer to her until they were inches are apart. “You have nightmares about the things you’ve done. That is why you had to get up so that you could look and see if the moon was full or not. You’re a werewolf.” Sif wanted to push him away, wanting to run as fast as she could as far as she could. He knew what she was, the danger that she posed to society being what she was. “And I’m not afraid of you.”

Sif blinked. “You should be,” She warned him. “Even when I am not a- When I am in that form, I can still kill you. I can run faster than you can blink. I have the strength of ten men. If you wanted to kill me, I could smell you and hear you before you ever appeared in front of me-“

“Tell me then. What do I smell like?” Loki interrupted her, curious by the claims she made.

Sif was taken aback by his question but closed her eyes as she inhaled, “You smell like the lemon and ginger that stains your breath from the tea you drink, the cool fresh spring water from your body wash, and your honey shampoo and conditioner. Your cologne is sharp and musky but not overpowering.” Sif reopened her eyes, “Do you believe me now?”

“Do you smell fear on me?”

“No, but I can hear your heart beating wildly in your chest. You are afraid.”

“That’s not because I am afraid.”

“Really? Then what is for?” Loki stepped forward, his eyes closed as his hands grabbed the sides of Sif’s face and he pressed his lips against hers. Sif stood stunned until she pushed him off of her as she felt a growing need build inside her. “But you can’t- I-I couldn’t- We shouldn’t-“ Sif stuttered, unable to form proper sentences after Loki’s kiss so he kissed her again. She felt paralyzed by his actions. _Was he really attracted to her even after knowing what she was?_ She pushed him off of her again, “I’m a werewolf. Don’t you understand that?”

“We just went over the fact that I do understand it,” Loki reached for her but she batted his hand away.

“You need to get away from me,” Sif growled at him, her eyes were beginning to take on an amber hue.

“You had your chance to kill me and you didn’t attack me.”

“If I was in the other form, I wouldn’t be able to control myself. I would kill you!”

“That’s what I’m trying to say! I met you in your wolf form and you didn’t kill me!”

“What?”

“A few months ago, I heard screaming nearby my camp and I saw you transform. I didn’t have time to run away. You had me trapped where I was for a good couple of hours and you didn’t attack me. I bought this cabin in the hopes that I would run into you again and have a talk with you about why you didn’t attack me.”

“I should have attacked you. You should be afraid-”

“I have never been afraid. “ Loki held onto her arms, pulling her close to him. Sif was silent as Loki continued speaking. His words drifted in and out of her ears as she stared at him. Her senses were becoming hazy and foggy. He was moving closer to her and before she knew it, he was kissing her again. Why was he kissing her? Why was he so stubborn? Did he not realize the danger she posed? Why was he…? Why was she kissing him back?

The need had returned to her, burning in a terrible flame throughout her. She was kissing him back, arms wrapping around him, pressing cloth to flesh. She needed to kiss him. Flamed burned through her as she pushed him back against the bed, ripping his shirt apart with her bare hands. She clawed at his newfound flesh, blood following the path of her nails. She could hear Loki’s moans and she stole them from his lips, feeding the fire burning in her. His cool hands were a relief against the burning of her skin. She dragged her mouth from his, her name was a soft sigh from his mouth. She moved to lick at the wounds she had caused, feeling the shiver it sent down Loki’s back. As she cleaned up near the top of one wound, the fire in her raged and she could not control it lashing out beneath her. She reacted the way her instincts were pushing her towards.

She realized her mistake as soon as it happened when a strangled gasp met her ear and the taste of flesh and blood filled her sense. The fire that had burned in her was now given name. Words began to fill her head said by a voice she was all too familiar with, “ _Claim. Mark. Mate._ ”

Sif tore herself away immediately from Loki, the haze from before leaving her just as quickly as it arrived. She stared at him, at what she had done: the scratches that littered his porcelain skin, the bits of blood that flowed from the wounds, and the teeth mark she had left on his shoulder. “Oh gods. I-I…I am so sorry. I shouldn’t have-“

Loki looked up at her with hooded, lust-filled eyes. “Why did you stop?”

“I could have killed you!” She yelled at him, pointing at the mark. “Don’t you understand the danger you put yourself in?!”

“What are you talking about?”

“Right there- that mark. The wolf has claimed you.”

“Claimed me for what exactly?”

“To mate. That is why the wolf didn’t attack you before, it wanted you for its mate and now it has you.”


	4. Beast You Made of Me

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ta da! After some technical difficulties, the new chapter is finally here! :) Enjoy lovelies!

She didn't stay at the cabin. She took the spare clothes Loki had offered and ran back to the city- back home to her apartment. Guilt flooded her senses then and still plagued her now. She couldn't believe what she had done, marking Loki as her mate. She wanted to understand the wolf so she could gain control over it but where was the logic in this? She feared she was losing herself piece by piece every time the wolf took control. Eventually, she would be nothing but the wolf and that would put everyone around in her danger.

What could she do? What was she supposed to do? The wolf was clawing its way out of her, wanting her to run now. Sif pulled her blankets closer to her and curled up in a ball. She was not going to give in to the wolf. She was going to fight this with every fiber in her being. She did not mate. She did not mark. She did not claim. She was not the wolf and the wolf was not her. Sif closed her eyes, forcing herself to sleep. The new day would arrive in a few hours and she would start new changes in her life.

Sif clenched her teeth as Thor waved at her from across the restaurant. She closed her hands into fists and crossed the room. This was the beginning test to her change: foregoing delicious, delectable rare meat in the best steakhouse in the city. Sif slid into the booth across from him and gave him a small smile. "About time you showed up. Although, you are not as late as my brother is. He's supposed to show up sometime. Anyway, how was your _camping trip_?" Thor asked her as she sat down. Thor had been her friend ever since she had moved to the city and had found out about the wolf on his own. He admitted his concerns to her about the wolf possibly attacking him if he ever encountered it, but he had remained her friend so she remained his.

"More wounds and scraps this time. I'm going to have to go back out there next month and wish for better luck next time. I want to know I can survive if I'm alone out there." Sif explained to him before the waitress approached their table. "Happy Birthday, by the way. Your brother is joining us?"

"Can I get your drinks?" She asked them, the question directed more at Thor than Sif and Sif rolled her eyes.

"We're both ready to order. Could I get this new entrée, the New York Strip, and for the side, I want loaded baked potato," Thor told the waitress. "Water, please."

The waitress turned toward Sif, "Can I get the smoked bacon and tomato salad with Italian dressing. Water as well."

Once the waitress scribbled down their orders and left, Thor gave Sif an odd look. "He's in town for the week and it is rare for him to do so. Plus, it's my birthday so he is trapped by social convention and obligated to at least show up to tell me Happy Birthday. What's up with you? You always get steak here." Sif shrugged her shoulders at him.

"I'm starting a new diet," Sif lied to him. She was going to conquer the wolf, even if it meant drastic measures. She meant to show it a lesson that she was in charge, not it.

"Rabbit food is the new diet or is there another reason why you are forgoing meat?" Thor asked her with a raised eyebrow.

"It has bacon." Sif pointed out, turning her gaze from him to survey the restaurant. Her skin had started to prickle and tingle as if it was anticipating something….or _someone_. Her eyes locked onto a pair of green ones, her heart quickened at the sight of him, and she could feel her blood rushing in her veins as he moved toward her booth. Sif's hand wrapped around the rolled silverware as he stopped in front of the booth.

"Well, I didn't expect to find you here, Sif," Loki said to her as he glanced between her and Thor. Something about the tone of his voice and the words he used told her that he was telling the truth. He turned from her and directed his gaze toward Thor, "Happy Birthday, Thor. I didn't realize you two were acquainted."

"How do you know each other?" Thor asked, looking at the both of them as if seeing them for the first time ever.

"He has a cabin in the woods. I stopped there a few times during my camping trips," Sif had said to Thor while Loki was saying something else to him at the exact same time, " _I patched her up after she came to my cabin seriously injured beyond all hell._ "

Thor turned toward Sif, "You were badly injured? Why didn't you say anything?"

"Because if I had, you would have been more concerned about my camping trips than you already are." Sif told him calmly as she clenched her fists. "Do you mind if I have a word with your brother for a quick moment." She slid out of the booth, not waiting for Thor's answer and dragged Loki over toward the hallway containing the restrooms.

"What have I done this time to invoke your anger?" He asked her once she let go of his vest. Sif felt the hairs on her skin prickle as he spoke.

"He knows about the wolf but he doesn't know I marked you. You will not tell him." Sif informed him as she stepped back from him.

Loki leaned against the wall, "You realize we may have to tell him eventually."

Sif stopped her pacing and stepped in front of him, "What do you mean?"

"As much as you hate it, _you_ marked me. Eventually, you will…" Loki paused as the bathroom door opened and a woman walked past them. "…feel certain things like lust and the wolf will seek out its mate."

"I am boycotting the wolf. I have nothing to do with what it has done and I do not accept that it has claimed you for a mate. I choose who I want to be with. It is not going to stop me." Sif whispered to him, narrowing her eyes at him.

"If the wolf won't, I will." Loki replied in a low voice. Was that a spark of jealously she felt while staring into his eyes? She wondered to herself. "Lately, I have noticed how our _connection_ takes effect. I feel your emotions: your anger, your guilt, your doubt. Perhaps, you feel mine." He grabbed her arms and pulled her into a kiss.

The kiss lasted less half a minute but Sif was bombarded with feelings she couldn't place. It was too overwhelming and Sif had to push herself away from him. Unable to make sense of her jumbled emotions, she slapped Loki across the face and stormed back to the table.

“Are you okay? You look a bit flushed.” Thor asked her as she slid back into the booth across from him.

“Your brother knows about my condition. I was just making sure that he didn’t make any comments about it in public. I may have gotten a little angry,” Sif explained to him as she took a sip of her water.

“There you are brother, I wondered what happened to you.” Thor remarked as his brother slid into the booth beside Sif.

“Well, I had to fend for myself. Sif had all but thrown me to the wolves.” Loki answered, flashing Sif a grin. A sudden wave of emotion moved through Sif and she could feel her face begin flushing again as her stomach tied itself in knots. Why was he...? That son of a-

“He clearly needs to work on his filter.” Thor noticed the way Sif clenched her hands angrily. “So you met my brother in a cabin in the woods? That’s where you have been hiding out these last two years, Loki. We’re going to talk about that when I get back.”

Sif gave Thor a forced smile as he excused himself to use the restroom. Once he was out of earshot, she turned to Loki. "I know what you're doing. Stop it."

I have no idea what you are talking about." The waitress returned to the table with Thor and Sif’s food. Loki declined her offer to order something as he watched Sif poke at her salad unhappily. When she left, he turned toward to speak, “how’s the rabbit food, wolfie?”

“ _Fuck you_.“ Sif hissed at him angrily as she stabbed at her salad, which made Loki only smile at her.

“Are you making an offer? You know I’ll accept,” Loki winked, sending another wave through Sif that made her stomach curl.

Sif bit the inside of her cheek before she leaned in closer to him, "How are you even aroused right now?"

"Someone showed up on my doorstep naked twice. The image is permanently seared into my brain, not that I mind." Loki answered nonchalantly as his eyes gazed at her form. "That shirt is doing you no favors either."

Sif grabbed her jacket to put it on and zip it up as far as it was able. Her stomach curled and she felt a shiver go up her spine. "You are a terrible person."

Loki gave her a devilish grin, "So it's working, is it?"

"No." Sif answered shortly, giving him a pointed look. She turned back to her salad and finally began to eat, trying her best to ignore the man beside her.

"If you have a problem, I could take care of yours or you could take care of mine," Loki said suggestively.

"You are my problem." Sif muttered under her breath as Thor returned to the table. Sif froze halfway through a bite of her salad when she felt a hand creep across her thigh. She glanced down briefly to see Loki's hand settle on her lap and she clenched her teeth. Oh, he was testing her patience and will-power.

"What's new with you, brother?" Thor asked Loki, and Sif could see the smirk on Loki's face from out of the corner of her eye.

"Well, you can inform Mother that I am seeing someone so she can get off my case now."

"Oh? Tell me more about this mystery woman."

Loki glanced over at Sif, "There's not much to tell you honestly. It's been a recent development. Although, she is a beautiful, smart, kind, brave, strong, and sensible woman."

"She sounds wonderful. Hopefully, she teaches you a lesson or two about manners." Sif said to Loki while discreetly moving his hand off of her thigh.

"What's her name?" Thor asked him while he cut his steak and took a bit of it.

"I'm not saying anymore until I am sure it will work between us."

"Hopefully, she’s better than your ex." Sif couldn't help the flicker of jealousy that surged through her and she dodged Loki's look at her, knowing exactly what she had caused him to feel. "I _still_ can't believe Sigyn left you at the altar."

Sif felt the wolf's white hot flame of jealousy rear up once again. Her hands gripped her silverware tight enough that her knuckles turned white and she bit down on her tongue hard enough to draw blood.

"I did not need to be reminded of that." Loki muttered to Thor in a low angry voice. His anger only twisted alongside her jealousy. There was more to his anger than just rage at what had happened between him and this Sigyn. Along with his anger, there was the feeling of a wounded pride, betrayal, melancholy, rage, denial, and so many more emotions. Sif stared at him, saddened by the fact that she knew exactly how he felt and a bit guilty now for how she had been giving him the cold shoulder. Loki set down his silverware and stood, "If you'll excuse me, I need a bit of air."

Sif looked up to see the dejected look on his face before he headed toward the front door. After he had left, she was washed over by the cloudy feeling of melancholy and gave Thor an angry look, "Could you be any more insensitive? Stay here. I'm going to go talk to him." She stood, grabbing her purse, and hurried after Loki.

He was sitting on the bench outside, staring down at the ground, but didn't look up at Sif when she approached him, not even when she sat down beside him. "You feel sorry for me."

Sif ignored his comment, “Tell me what happened between you and your ex.” Sif felt his anger when he sighed and turned to look at her.

“Why do you care? You want to be rid of me.” Her heart ached at the sight of him. His eyes, nose, and cheeks were red from his small cry fest.

“You know I’m not from here, originally. I’m from the west, small town near the mountains. I…had a boyfriend, my best friend since I was attacked by the wolf.” Sif told him as she wrapped her arms around herself and leaned back against the bench. “My parents knew what had happened with the wolf and elected not to tell me, but rather they would give me medicine to knock me out every month during wolf-time. I was nineteen when I snuck out of the house to go meet Hal. It was just after sunset and…well…I’m sure you can guess what happened.”

Sif couldn’t help the feelings she dredged up during her story and Loki’s sadness only mixed in with her own. Tears began to form in her eyes but she went on, “ _Wolf attack seriously injures teens in the woods, one dead_. That’s what the media said, my family knew the truth and tried to tell me after the funeral. By that point, I was already on a bus heading east.”

“You said you remember when you change,” Loki whispered.

Sif wiped away her tears as she continued, “The wolf remembers pain, blood, and death because it causes highly intense feelings within the wolf. It remembers injuring and injuries. Knowing what truly happened to Hal was horrifying; it put a lot into perspective for me.”

“And yet you don’t remember meeting me while being the wolf because you didn’t injury yourself. You sat and watched me,” Loki told her as he grabbed her hand gently and Sif looked over at him again. “Maybe it wasn’t the wolf who chose me as a mate, maybe it was you? You knew what happened last time you attacked someone, what if you broke the wolf‘s control? Found the only loophole to save someone from the wolf?”

“You think I chose you as my mate so the wolf wouldn’t eat you too?” Sif asked him with a sniff.

Loki shrugged his shoulders, “It’s a possibility. It would mean you have control over the wolf after all.” Sif thought his idea was a tad impractical, but she couldn’t help wondering if he was right. She had tried to tame the wolf for years since Hal’s death. While she was unhappy with the idea of Loki being her mate, the idea of her finding a way to save someone from the wolf made her happy and hopeful that she was on the right track. Loki gave her a small smile and Sif smiled back at him, feeling happier with herself now than she did earlier.

Sif squeezed Loki’s hand as she stood, pulling him up with her. “Let’s go somewhere else. I need a drink and you look like you do too.”


	5. Little pig, Little pig, Let me come in

Loki groaned as he heard his phone buzz for the tenth time this morning. Blindly, he tried to grab his phone from where it was hiding in his clothes on the floor over the side of the bed. He sighed as it eluded him and landed on the floor with a thud. He finally opened one eye and picked it up from the floor, squinting at the bright screen to see who was calling him. "Thor? What do you want?"

"Finally, one of you answers! Are you still with Sif? I have been looking for the both of you all night! I got Sif's texts but not all of them made sense-" Thor began frantically.

"Thor, slow down. I just woke up." Loki interrupted his brother as he rubbed his eyes lazily and pushed his hair out of his face.

"Yes at 10:30 in the morning. I have been trying to get ahold of you and Sif ever since the two of you ditched me last night at the restaurant on my birthday..." Thor explained as Loki laid back against the bed and slowly stretched out his sore muscles. "I have a message from Sif saying you both were drinking downtown and the next messages I get said she marked you and was laying down her claim, ' _pictures to be sent later_ '?" Loki felt the blankets shift beside him and he froze as Sif curled up by his side. "Please tell me you both didn't get tattoos with each other's names on yourselves."

"Not exactly. Let me call you back later." Loki whispered as he hung up the phone, letting it drop from his hand back onto the floor unceremoniously. He ran his hand through his unkempt hair as he lifted part of the blanket gently. Yup, definitely naked. She may yell at him later. "Sif? Uh....wake up?"

"Ughhh....twenty more minutes." A tired Sif mumbled as she rolled away from him and hid her head under a pillow.

Loki gently untangled himself from the blankets and put back on his boxers. After accidentally walking into her closet, Loki managed to find her bedroom door and proceeded to try and locate the bathroom. He grabbed the fluffy yellow bathrobe off the back of the door after he was done using the restroom. Prompted by his growling stomach, he padded into the kitchen for food. With minimum difficulty finding everything he needed for omelets, he set about cooking the eggs. Eventually, he heard shuffling of reluctant feet behind him. "Morning, sleepyhead." He greeted Sif, casting a look at her over his shoulder. She had tossed on a blue tank top and sweat pants. She took a seat at island counter top on one of her bar chairs. "Apparently, you sent Thor a message last night about having marked me and laying down your claim on me. Pictures were going to be sent later on." Sif groaned and let her head thud against the counter. She pulled her phone from her pocket and began to search through all the drunk texts she had sent Thor last night. "When I talked to him, he was thinking we had gotten matching tattoos with each other's names. My brother can be so innocent sometimes."

"He called 28 times just this morning?" Sif mumbled as Loki set down a plate of eggs in front of her and his eggs next to her. "I made breakfast." Loki told her while he sat down next to her and  she ignored the plate of food in front her. She was still shifting through the messages, fully immersed in her phone. Loki began to eat his plate while Sif neglected hers. After a while of hearing Sif tap away on the phone's keyboard, he turned and grabbed the phone out of her hands. Sif made to protest but he silenced her as she spoke by saying, "Eat your breakfast and then you can text Thor whatever you wish."

Sif begrudgingly agreed and poked at the omelet before she started eating. It was gone in less than five minutes and Sif looked over at Loki expectantly. "The phone?"

"Fine." Loki sighed, handing back the phone to her as he gathered up all the plates and washed them. He cast a withering look at Sif as he passed by her on the way back to the bedroom. She was still ignoring him as she sent another message to Thor. He slammed the bedroom door behind him angrily. He pulled off the robe and tossed it aside as he went straight to his clothes.

The door opened as Loki was putting back on his clothes, flustered by the way they were partially inside out and strewn about the room. Sif leaned in the doorway and stared at him a moment, "Why are you angry?"

"I'm not angry." Loki answered shortly after locating one of his missing shoes.

"Bullshit. I know you are." Sif remarked as she stepped into the room. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." Loki lied poorly, growing more and more frustrated with his missing shoe still out of his sight.

"Sit down and talk to me."

"Why should I? You seem perfectly content with talking to Thor."

"Are you jealous?" Sif crossed her arms in front of her.

"No."

"Loki-"

"Just stop! Okay?" Loki interrupted her as he sat down on the bed. "I thought we would be different. I thought our connection would be different. I haven't been the same since Sigyn called off the wedding...." He trailed off and silence filled the air for a moment. "You're not interested in having a mate but you are stuck with me. I get it. Last night was a mistake."

Sif sat down next to him, "I marked you, I know, and I've forced you to be my mate. It's not fair to you or me. Yesterday, you made me feel better because you made me believe I was in control of the wolf. That has been the greatest gift anyone has ever given me." She began to fidget with her hands, avoiding looking at Loki in favor of gazing out the window. "Last night was a drunken mess- and partially a mistake- but it was fun and enjoyable because you were with me." Sif admitted, rubbing her arms. Finally she looked over at him, his expression unreadable, his feelings too jumbled to make sense. "I want to try our relationship but it's a work in progress. We've skipped over dates and been forced into this relationship but I want to try. It starts with you letting me in. So tell me about you, about the wedding, anything, everything. Just let me in."

Loki slumped his shoulders in defeat as he brought down his walls of security. He told her about Sigyn, a hard-working waitress he had flirted with in a cafe he often frequented. He recounted the day the relationship started when Sigyn had finally relented and agreed to go on a date with him. He felt his heart thump nervously as he told Sif about proposing to Sigyn and about the wedding, the moment she had gotten cold feet during the ceremony and left him at the altar. His voice cracked when he explained that Sigyn never replied back to him when he attempted to contact her for an explanation. She felt him grow angry when he said he received the wedding invitation and how much control he lost when he arrived at the ceremony, causing him to destroy the entire event. The familiar feeling of guilt and sadness rolled through her as he remembered running away to the cabin after realizing what he had done to Sigyn's wedding. She was the only one who knew the whole story, not even Thor was privy to knowing Loki had gone and destroyed Sigyn's wedding. Sif lost track of when he began crying during his story and pulled him into her arms, quietly letting him cry on her shoulder while she attempted to calm him.

She rubbed his back in soothing circles as he calmed himself down. "You said you could feel what I feel when I marked you. You said I was angry, full of guilt and doubt. When you weren't trying to turn me on, I felt yours: loneliness, sadness, and hopeless." Loki wiped away the tears and looked up at Sif, while she continued to speak, "However, you are more likely to be calm, relaxed, curious, and patient. It feels nice and open like lying in a field of wildflowers and feeling free to do whatever."

"You're more determined, brave, and careful." Loki began slowly. As he continued to speak, Sif felt her heart flutter against her chest. "You make me feel secure like being on a rollercoaster and knowing it's going to be fun and exciting and dangerous but you'll never fall off the ride. That's how I always want to feel."

"Do you trust me?" Sif asked him quietly.

Loki nodded without hesitation, "Yes."

"Close your eyes for me." He closed his eyes shortly after. Sif waited a moment, calming her nerves before she leaned in and pressed her lips against Loki's. The kiss was short and sweet, but Sif enjoyed it bease she was in control. She pulled back and stared into Loki's eyes after he reopened them. "Do you wanna go out with me on a date later?" She asked him, the nervous feeling creeping back into her stomach.

"What are we doing on this date?" Loki inquired, his arms still wrapped around her and pulled her back to him.

"It'll be a surprise." Sif answered with a smile.

Loki smiled back at her, "I like surprises. I'll need to go change and take a shower before our date."

"Same here. Meet back here at 2:30 and then we'll be off. Wear something comfortable." Sif kissed him once more, another short kiss before pulling away from him and headed toward the hallway. "Your shoe is in the hallway!" She yelled to him before disappearing into the bathroom.


	6. Who's afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short little chapter but it'll be worth it!

Loki tugged on the blindfold once more. "Do they serve jello? The green kind, I mean. Anything other than the green jello is a waste of jello that could have been made green." Sif smiled to herself at his question. Loki's curiosity was getting the better of him as she continued to drive and he was anxious to know where Sif was taking him for their date.

"I'm not sure.They certainly could if they wanted to." Sif answered ominously and Loki sighed softly.

"It sounds like we are heading to a mall. It has many different kinds of food, places to shop, and has entertainment." Loki guessed, still fiddling with the blindfold on his face. He had been guessing for the last two hours, but Sif was determined not to let him know where she was taking him.

Sif reached over and smacked his hands. "If you keep messing with it, I will turn the car around. No, it is not a mall."

"A fair or festival, surely?" He asked as he crossed his arms.

"Nope." Sif said with a smirk as she paid for parking at the gate. The attendant gave her a weird look after he noticed the blindfold covering Loki's eyes and she held a finger to her lips to signal for him to stay quiet. The attendant shrugged his shoulders before handing her the parking pass. Sif pulled forward and proceeded to look for a parking spot as close to the front as she could manage.

"Is that...screaming?" Loki inquired as they parked. "This is a very odd date or you have some very odd kinks...I do so hope to learn more about the latter."

"Blindfold off!" Sif announced with a grin that spread from ear to ear.

Loki pulled off the blindfold and couldn't help the grin that spread across his own face at the sight before him. "You brought me to an amusement park."

"Six Flags to be exact." Sif corrected him as she turned off the car. "Your brother said you haven't been here yet so I am fixing that for you. We are riding all my favorite rides, which is most of them!" She hopped out of the car with her purse.

Loki exited the car, eyes still fixed on a black rollarcoaster nearby. He watched as the riders went up a long incline before rapidly diving back down, screaming their hearts off as flew upside through a loop. Sif grabbed his hand and lead Loki to the front gates. After flashing her pass and buying Loki's ticket, the two made it pass to the front gate and stood in front of a grand fountain. The fountain had been ornately decorated for the season, Loki assumed, for the water had been colored blood-red and skeletons were perched upon the fountain's base. The entire park was decked out for Halloween and was very spooky.

Loki turned to Sif, who was smiling at him. "You said you felt I was like a rollarcoaster so that's where I decided to take you."

Loki wrapped his arms around her and planted a kiss on her forehead. "You are the best. Let's go on the one that goes upside down." He then proceeded to drag Sif all around the themepark, hopping onto any and every rollarcoaster in sight. They munched on corn dogs and slurped cherry flavored Icees. By the end of the night, Loki was surprised at how exhausted he was. Sif was resting her head against his shoulder while they walked and practically nodding off. Loki steered Sif back toward the entrance gates and the two got back into her car. Loki set up the GPS for the two-hour ride back home. Sif curled up in the passenger's seat as they began the journey home using Loki's jacket as a blanket. She remained asleep the entire ride home, thoroughly worn from a long day of adrenaline pumped action and rides.

When the two of them arrived back at Loki's cabin, he insisted upon Sif staying the night since she was far too tired to drive home. She climbed into bed in her underwear and bra, followed shortly by Loki. She wrapped her arms around him and pulled him closer to her. "Goodnight, Loki."

"Goodnight, Sif." He replied as she fell asleep on his chest. He stared up at the ceiling, musing happily on the day they had together. She'd been happy today and excited and scared at a few times when the rollarcoaster would flip upside down. He liked being her mate, knowing what she was feeling, knowing how she felt around him. It was a different experience for him, never having to question what she felt toward him because he would always know. His phone buzzed lightly on the table, lighting up the room for a moment. He grabbed it carefully as to not wake Sif and opened the text message he received.

His heart dropped in his chest and he felt like he couldn't breathe. It was a picture of them both at the amusement park, sitting at a table together. The text accompanying the picture filled him with dread as did the sender.

_New girlfriend?? Not for long... ;)_

_-Sigyn_

Sif shifted beside him and he turned the phone off quickly. She lifted her sleepy head to look at him. "You okay?"

"Just a nightmare, let's go back to sleep." He lied to her, closing his eyes and holding her a bit tighter than before. He waited for Sif to fall asleep before reopening his eyes. He hoped by the stars above that Sif would never have to deal with Sigyn ever in her lifetime.


End file.
